Asbestos in Your Home: What to Do

Where it is found

Asbestos was widely used in UK building materials until the late 1990s. If your home was built or renovated before 2000, asbestos could be in artex ceilings, textured coatings, insulation boards, old floor tiles and their adhesives, cement garage and shed roofs, guttering and downpipes, boiler flues, and around old pipe lagging. Intact, undisturbed asbestos is low risk. The danger comes when it is drilled, cut, sanded or broken, releasing breathable fibres.

When it is dangerous

Asbestos-related disease is caused by inhaling fibres, usually over long exposure. Brief, one-off exposure is low risk, but you should still avoid it. The highest-risk materials are loose-fill insulation and sprayed coatings; lower-risk (but still regulated) are asbestos cement and textured coatings. Any work on high-risk asbestos must be done by a licensed asbestos contractor.

What to do if you suspect it

If you think a material in your home contains asbestos and you plan to do work that might disturb it, stop and have it tested. A UKAS-accredited laboratory can analyse a sample (taken with proper precautions), or you can instruct an asbestos surveyor. If asbestos is present and in good condition, the safest option is often to leave it in place and manage it. If it must be removed because of renovation or damage, use a contractor licensed for the type of work required.

• •Don't drill, sand or saw suspected asbestos materials.
• •Get a sample tested by a UKAS-accredited lab.
• •Use a licensed contractor for high-risk removal.
• •Keep a record of where asbestos remains for future tradespeople.